


have yourself a merry little christmas

by midorkiyaizuku



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates, Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Christmas, Christmas AU, Christmas Fluff, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Modern Royalty, Royalty, Sharing a Bed, a cute self indulgent christmas story, i promise this is a happy story, this is lowkey based off A Christmas Prince
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-14
Updated: 2019-07-02
Packaged: 2019-08-23 19:35:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16625147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/midorkiyaizuku/pseuds/midorkiyaizuku
Summary: “You’re Princess Elise’s new tutor, correct? And you’re horrifically late. Please be prompt in the future.” Inigo had two options. He could correct the man, tell him that no, he wasn’t a tutor for a princess. He was just a dumb reporter who was looking for a story. He could be completely truthful about the matter, and deal with the consequences of his snooping. Or-“I’m so sorry I’m late, I promise to work harder in the future.” Inigo flashed the man his award-winning smile. He hated himself. This was so clearly a horrible idea that was going to get him into some serious trouble when he was discovered, and yet Inigo found that he didn’t care. Opportunity had come knocking, and who was Inigo not to open the door?---Or alternatively, a xanlow A Christmas Prince AU





	1. The Beginning

 

_“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, toys in ev’ry store. But the prettiest sight to see, is the holly that will be on your own front door.”  
_

**_– It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas_ **

* * *

 

“This is a huge story, Inigo,” Severa commented from where she lay across his lounge, not looking up from the phone in her hand. Her red hair was splayed out underneath. Until this moment, Inigo didn’t even realise she’d been listening to his constant blabbering.

  
“I know, and I still can’t believe _The Regna Ferox_ gave it to me,” _The Regna Ferox_ was the biggest newspaper in the East, and they were trusting a lowly fitness columnist to cover a royal coronation. _Was everyone else busy or something?_ He didn’t exactly know the first thing about royalty or politics, and he couldn’t see a way to make an arm-toning guide fit the piece. Although, a ‘fitness regime fit for royalty’ could be a fun column.  
  
“You sound kind of miserable. What could possibly be wrong?” She was right, obviously. If he pulled this off, he was in line for a promotion and a pay rise. More importantly, this was a chance to prove he was better than an intern, or a fitness columnist.

And yet -

“I don’t want to leave my dad over Christmas.” He tried to hide how much the prospect troubled him. They had been virtually inseparable for the last eight years; he couldn’t bear the thought of leaving him alone the coldest time of the year.

“Fear not, friend!” Owain’s exclamation snapped Inigo out of his thoughts. “Henry will be in very capable hands, not to face Winter’s cold grasp alone!” Inigo had honestly forgotten that Owain had been there, his usual loud demeanour dulled to a fascinated silence. It brought a small smile to Inigo’s face. He didn’t doubt that Owain would forget his father for even a second. “Go and pursue your brooding prince, Inigo!”

  
“And treat us both to dinner when you get back.” He could hear the smirk in Severa’s voice.

  
“Are you guys sure? It’s a huge thing to ask, and I don’t want to dampen your own holiday plans and-“

  
“Silence, Inigo! Henry has been a prominent figurehead in our lives since we were in diapers. It’s the least we can do to repay him for his unwavering kindness!”

Inigo couldn’t help the warmth that blossomed through his chest. He knew his father loved Owain and Severa. They’d spent every weekend at each other’s houses for the majority of their lives.

“But anyway, what’s the big deal with this prince? I thought monarchies were old fashioned.”

  
“It’s a dull story. Prince Xander of Nohr is about to be coronated as king after the death of King Garon, which apparently is a controversy since Garon’s reign was horrible for the people, and no one wants his son to repeat his mistakes.” Inigo huffed. He’d done hours of Google searching to try and gain a full understanding of the situation in Nohr. And then, all he really knew was that King Garon had been one of the worst monarchs in history. He was bad for the economy and bad for the people. The rumour had it that his eldest son, Prince Xander, was shaping out to fit right into his father’s despicable mould.

“I almost feel bad for the sucker. Everyone’s expecting him to be bad.” Owain hummed, lips downturned.

“Or perhaps he is!” Severa piped back.

  
Inigo was just going to have to find out the truth about Prince Xander for himself.

* * *

  
  
The first thing that Inigo noticed about Nohr was that the weather was perpetually horrible. It was always cold, always snowing and always dark. He truly hated it.

Getting to Nohr had been easier than Inigo had thought it would be. There weren’t even any connecting flights, just one direct from America to Europe. He hadn’t gotten stopped at customs, and the flight had been smooth; he was going to check into his hotel right after the press conference. It had all been going so well up to this point. And then he reached the palace, and his luck appeared to run out, if not abandon him altogether.  

  
Inigo wrapped the scarf tighter around his neck, fidgeting with the tassels on the end. He was sitting amongst the press outside Nohr’s palace, some holding notepads, others expensive-looking cameras. An official wearing an absolutely ridiculous hat had greeted the crowd and told them that Prince Xander was going to address them within the hour with his announcement, and a press conference to follow.  

That had been over two hours ago.

Many of the reporters present were literally fuming by this point. Some had even gotten up and left in huffs of anger, mumbling something about an asshole of a prince never showing up. Inigo, on the other hand, was frustrated. If he was completely honest with himself he had been expecting such to happen. This prince obviously thought he was so high and mighty he could let people wait in the cold, and he was going to be the reason Inigo’s story suffered.

Inigo looked down at his watch for what felt like the millionth time. The likeliness that Prince Xander was going to show up was growing slimmer and slimmer. The seconds ticking by were mocking him. He texted Owain and Severa another update, featuring some incredibly colourful language.

By now he was one of the few reporters left. Inigo could feel himself growing madder by the second. He had never been known for his patience, after all. It was abundantly clear that Prince Xander wasn’t gracing the public with his awe-worthy presence. _Asshole, absolute asshole._

But no, Inigo wasn’t going to let some pompous prince stop him today. He stood up and stretched his aching arms before a mischievous grin crossed his face. If his article wasn’t going to have any significant quotes from His Royal Pain in the Proverbial, he was at least going to score some sweet photos of Nohr’s palace.

And what a magnificent castle it was. The gardens, which Inigo had been residing in for the last few hours, were grander than any botanical gardens back home. There were roses of every colour imaginable, all in neatly organised rows. The smell was divine, and Inigo wished his mother were here to see them. His eyes moved to the actual castle. It was all arches and curves, and possibly the most beautiful piece of architecture known to man. Blanketed in thick, white snow only seemed to make it glow in an angelic light.

Inigo thought it strange that there was a lack of guards around. _Did they have other duties? Was keeping the public out not one of them?_ He swiftly moved outside the gardens and towards the first door he could see. It wasn’t the front entrance- he could tell that much. He placed one gloved hand up against the knob and gave it a twist. Perhaps his luck hadn’t run out, after all, the door easily opened under his nimble fingers.

It shouldn’t have been possible that the inside of the castle was even more gorgeous than the outside, and yet it took Inigo’s breath away. The high ceilings were adorned by crystal chandeliers that lit up every corner of the grand corridor he stood in. The carpets were a deep red, and the walls a pristine white. There were beautiful paintings of every kind hung on the walls, each in a magnificent gold frame.  Inigo fumbled with his phone to take some photos.

He kept moving, needing to get as many pictures as he could before he got caught. _God, he hoped he didn’t get caught. Could he get persecuted for this? What did Nohr do with international criminals? They couldn’t possibly still have the death sentence, right?_ Those thoughts left his head as he noticed a full suit of armour around the corner. He couldn’t hide his boyish glee while looking at the Knights' armour. He had always loved knights as a child, and he and his father always found themselves geeking out over anything medieval. He snapped another photo, not only for his article but also to send to Henry. His dad would love this.

“Excuse me.” _Fuck._ Panic filled Inigo’s veins, his heart thumping in his chest. This couldn’t have been happening. He hadn’t heard footsteps coming towards him. He could have sworn the corridor was empty. He had only checked a few seconds ago!

He slowly turned around to face his certain doom. Before him was a man, probably around Inigo’s age, with silver hair pulled back into a neat ponytail. He didn’t look like a threat, but it was a fact universally known that looks could be deceiving. The man had a fine facial structure, complete with high cheekbones and dark lashes. If Inigo hadn’t been scared out of his mind, he would have thought the man was beautiful.

“Y-yes?” Inigo stuttered. Maybe he could talk his way out of this one; pretend he didn’t speak English, and he was just a lost tourist who had stumbled where he shouldn’t be.

“You’re Princess Elise’s new tutor, correct? And you’re horrifically late. Please be prompt in the future.” Inigo had two options. He could correct the man, tell him that no, he wasn’t a tutor for a princess. He was just a dumb reporter who was looking for a story. He could be completely truthful about the matter, and deal with the consequences of his snooping. Or-

“I’m so sorry I’m late, I promise to work harder in the future.” Inigo flashed the man his award-winning smile. _He hated himself_. This was so clearly a horrible idea that was going to get him into some serious trouble when he was discovered, and yet Inigo found that he didn’t care. Opportunity had come knocking, and who was Inigo not to open the door?

“My name is Jakob, manager of the staff at Castle Krakenburg.” Jakob seemed to give Inigo a once-over, “Please tell me you have more appropriate clothing.” His icy demeanour truly did suit the Nohrian climate.

Inigo gazed down. He was wearing jeans and sneakers, which he assumed were not the correct attire to be donning in the presence of royalty. He compared his attire to Jakob’s. The silver-haired man was wearing a three-piece suit, not a single wrinkle in sight that was paired with immaculately polished shoes. He was truly the image of perfection, if not for his cold demeanour.

“Of course I do.” He hoped the sweater and trousers he had hastily packed the prior evening would suffice.

“Then please change into them before you meet the Princess this afternoon. And forgive me, but I cannot recall your name.”

He couldn’t possibly give his real name. His articles were on the internet! He’d be discovered immediately.

“It’s Laslow.” _What kind of name was that, Inigo?_ He stuck his hand out.

Jakob didn’t shake it. “Well, Laslow, welcome to Castle Krakenburg. I hope everything goes well for you.”

  
Oh, Inigo didn’t just hope this went well. He _needed_ it to go well. 


	2. Elise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inigo begins to meet more of the inhabitants of Castle Krakenburg- most importantly Elise, the princess he's supposed to be tutoring.

_“Holidays are joyful, there’s always something new. But ev’ryday’s a holiday, when I’m near to you.”_

  
**– Merry Christmas, Darling**

* * *

 

After the brisk meeting with Jakob in the corridor, Inigo was marched to retrieve his luggage before being escorted to a room that would become his own.

“Are you sure this is my room?” Inigo asked, turning back to Jakob. The room was far grander than anything Inigo had ever resided in. It was larger than the room he had at his parent's place as a child, and it was perhaps even bigger than the entirety of his current apartment back in New York. The high ceilings were ornate with swirls and flowers, and there were large glass doors that seemed to lead to a balcony

Jakob ignored his question, presumably believing it was insignificant. “Please meet in the hall in an hour to meet with Princess Elise.” And with that, Jakob turned on his heel and left Inigo standing in that grand room completely alone, with absolutely no clarification of where the hall was. Not that he minded, he could probably find a hall himself. He had an hour to collect his thoughts, and attempt to convincingly craft the character of ‘Laslow’.

 _What was a royal tutor supposed to be like?_ One would probably say that they were supposed to be uptight and proper. Probably stuffy and boring. Inigo shook the thoughts of uptight old women with moles and permanent scowls embedded on their faces out of his head. He couldn’t possibly change himself that drastically, and even then, he definitely didn’t want to. If anything, if Princess Elise was drawn to his character, she might be inclined to give him more information. He felt manipulative saying it, but this was the best way to get the most information on Prince Xander.  

He would just tone himself down a little. Inigo had been faking an aura of confidence his whole life, he knew it wouldn’t fail him now. He had perfected it.

It was the same aura of confidence he had employed after the loss of his mother, just so his father wouldn’t worry about him attending school, then university. It had served him well thus far, and it seemed _Laslow_ would have to be just as confident as Inigo had always pretended to be.

Inigo walked around the rooms and dumped his bag in the back corner, before rummaging through and pulling out the very respectable sweater and trousers he promised Jakob he would wear.

After he changed, Inigo took in his appearance in the pristine floor-length mirror in the corner of the room. It was the most boring he could ever remember appearing. The dull green of the sweater made him look paler than he already was. Not even the silver earring he always wore could liven up his drab appearance. But it would have to do.

His phone began to vibrate in his pocket. Owain and Severa must have just woken up (time zones were terrible, truly), and were responding to the last stream of rather unfavourable texts Inigo had sent. He hadn’t had the chance to update them since he snuck into Castle Krakenburg.

 **Severa:** _he really didn’t show up?? SLACK!!! Told u so_

 **Owain:** _Perhaps the prince met a foe on his way, and had to go to battle!_

Inigo was not inclined to believe that in the slightest. Their texts and theories kept escalating the longer they texted. Owain thought he was battling a dragon. Severa thought he was entertaining women. But that wasn’t at the forefront of Inigo’s mind, and he couldn’t bring himself to reply to their antics.

 **Inigo:** _I may have snuck into the castle_

He should have given more of an explanation than that.

 **Severa:** _what the actual fuck_

 **Owain:** _ADVENTURE ON, BRAVE WARRIOR!_

 **Severa:** _please elaborate??_

And so Inigo explained exactly what had happened. It helped, really, to get his thoughts in order. They got over the initial shock surprisingly fast, but kept firing an endless stream of questions and comments towards him.

 **Severa:** _dude, you barely passed grade 11 math. how the hell are you going to tutor a princess?_

Inigo hadn’t planned that far ahead yet. It wasn’t that Inigo was a horrible student (though, a few of his teachers may have thought differently), but that he never had the patience to learn things that he deemed unnecessary. Trigonometry was a beast he never bothered taming.  He hoped that Princess Elise wasn’t yet old enough to be learning things that surpassed Inigo’s own ability. _Perhaps she was interested in journalism? He’d get a kick out of that._

* * *

It was undoubtedly time to make his way to the hall. He left himself ten minutes to wander the corridors of the castle until he found it. He imagined it would be sufficient time to find such a central sounding room. _The_ hall would be easy to find, he imagined.

He imagined wrong.

He gazed down at his watch for what felt like the millionth time that day. He had a minute to find the hall, and yet all he had found was himself lost in what felt like a never-ending maze of corridors. In his own confusion, he didn’t realise he was walking right into someone until it was far too late.

“Someone’s eager, hm?” The stranger's voice was smooth. Inigo looked up into one striking blue eye and one eyepatch. Inigo must have jumped back ten feet. He had never been this careless!

“Sorry! I-” _Be confident, Inigo._ The second thing he noticed was that the man he had walked into was seriously attractive. _Was it a Nohrian thing? Were they all born with superior genetics?_ He had the first two buttons of his shirt undone, and his hair was sticking out in all directions. Inigo may have only been at Castle Krakenburg for an hour, but he knew that if this man worked here, he definitely didn’t conform to Jakob’s dress codes.

“I’m guessing you’re the newest tutor? Tell me, do you offer hands-on experience?” The man was smirking at him. Inigo balled his hands into tight fists. While this man didn’t appear to pose any real threat, but there was still an uneasiness present.

“Sorry, what?” _This guy had to be joking, right?_

“Niles, leave the poor man alone.” Another voice, definitely Inigo’s saviour, spoke from the end of the corridor. Blonde hair, pale skin and small stature; Inigo recognised this person immediately from all his research. For reasons unbeknownst to himself, the realisation that he was going to have to meet all of the Nohrian royalty was only hitting him now. He hadn’t even considered what he was going to do! Here he was, in the same corridor as a prince and yet he had no idea what to do or how to act. And so he did the first thing that came to mind.

“Prince Leo”. He _curtsied_ , and then a sensation of burning in his cheeks that he prayed wasn’t as red as it felt.

Oh, what a fool he felt. He heard the first man- Niles-  snort at his panicked response. _He really wasn’t doing very well._

Whatever mistake he had made, Leo appeared to take pity on him and ignore it.

“You must be looking for Elise. I believe you’ll find her in the hall. It’s down the other end of this corridor, the last door to your left.” His voice was completely void of expression. Prince Leo had to be the coldest teenager Inigo had ever come across. Perhaps this was the life of royalty; having to grow up faster. He was so evidently youthful in appearance, and yet he spoke as though he carried such a weight. _Was this the result of being the son of King Garon?_ Inigo made a mental note to write on this later.

“Thank you, your highness.” He bowed his head and offered a small smile.

“You should be off then. I am sure we will speak properly at a later period. Niles, come with me, please.” With a smirk from Niles and a curt nod from Leo, both men turned around and left Inigo standing in the corridor.

Nohr was turning out to be a complete whirlwind. In just over an hour, he had found employment as a tutor, met someone who looked like a pirate out of an erotica novel, and a teenage prince.

But nothing could have prepared him for Elise.

* * *

 

Leo’s directions were perfect. Inigo found the hall in under a minute and somehow was only a tiny bit late.

Elise was standing in the middle of the room, a giant smile on her face. Her blonde hair was styled in two immaculate pigtails, and her dress flowed around her in a cloud of baby-pink.

He bowed (Inigo was one to learn from his mistakes), and approached her. “Your royal highness.”

“You’re a tutor?” Her big brown eyes were soaking in his appearance. She was adorable. She couldn’t possibly be much of a handful, right? She looked young, if Inigo were going to guess, he would have said she was about twelve.

“You don’t look like a tutor.”

Or perhaps she was going to be harder to fool than he thought.

“Of course I am, milady! Laslow the tutor at your service.” He sent her a bright smile, hoping to win her over with his dazzling (fake) personality. She seemed to accept his answer, because she sent him a sweet smile, and stuck out her hand. It wasn’t intended to shake, he realised upon noticing it was more clenched than open to being shaken. But Inigo had seen enough Hallmark movies to know what was expected! He took her hand in his and bowed over to place a kiss on the back of it.

He smiled, but celebrated his victory far too early. He felt her open up her hand and drop something into his palm. Something that was _moving._ He made an undignified yelp as she pulled her hand away and immediately noticed a small, white mouse in his hand. Elise must have found the look of absolute horror on his face hysterical, because Elise was giggling behind her hand at her own devilish prank.

 _Be cool, Inigo. She needs to like you._ “And who would this be?” Her giggling stopped upon realising that he was no longer panicking. It wasn’t so much that Inigo was scared of mice, but more the fact he hadn’t been expecting one. Inigo didn’t mind mice. The fond memory of playing with Severa’s mice in her childhood home came to mind, and just like that, he was back to his ever-confident self.

“That’s Mouseketeer. My last few tutors hated him.” A frown was spreading across her face. She was trying to get rid of him, but Inigo was not going to budge.

“A noble name for a noble mouse. Does he also like to learn?” Inigo stroked the mouse's back.

“No, I suppose he doesn’t.” She held out her hand, and Inigo plopped Mouseketeer back into her palm. She smiled again, but Inigo suspected she was faking it. “You don’t mind him?”

“He’s more than welcome to join us, I think he’s lovely.” Elise perked up at this. She had never had a tutor who was so quick to accept her tricks, and even embrace them.

“Shall we go to the library?”

* * *

 

The library had a thousand shelves that spanned the ceiling to the floor, and contained books that looked absolutely ancient. The library at Castle Krakenburg contained more information and wealth than most could wish to see in their lifetimes. Inigo was going to have to take photos of it later.

They were positioned at a table by a window; the crisp white light streamed into the room, completely illuminating every nook and cranny of it

“What are we learning today?” Elise was already cradling her head in her hand. After dropping Mouseketeer back into her quarters it became clear that the girl really had no affinity for being tutored. “Can it not be something boring? Please? I’ve had enough algebra to last me all year!” _Music to Inigo’s ears._

However, he wasn’t ready to yet teach her something. He wasn’t even sure if he knew anything worth teaching! When he got back to his room tonight, he was going to watch enough YouTube tutorials to teach himself first. For now, his goal was for her to like him enough to trust him.

“I was thinking, why don’t you tell me what you need help with, and we’ll start there!” Inigo sat in the chair across from her. She really was the cutest kid he had ever seen, and her childlike nature only served to make Inigo immediately fond of her. She seemed so different to Leo. He hoped she would continue to warm up to him, too. It would make his job so much easier.

“I like writing! Can we do some writing?”  She was practically beaming sunshine at him. _How could anyone ever tell her no_?

“Of course, milady. I do love writing,” This was all panning out far better than expected.

“Are you a writer, Laslow?”

Inigo was internally cursing himself. He was supposed to be careful, but his own big mouth was going to thwart his plans. He had to think fast. A half-truth would save him here.

“I did an English degree at university.” Inigo thought it best to cut out that he did a double-degree in journalism.  He smiled at her again, but she didn’t have time to comprehend his answer, as she was looking out the window beside them, distracted by a certain figure.

“I didn’t realise Xander wasn’t working!”

Inigo peered outside. In contrast to the snow which had blanketed the gardens, there stood a singular man. Inigo couldn’t tell what he was doing, he was too far away.

“Why don’t we go say hello?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOO I HAD SO MUCH FUN WRITING THIS LMAO. I hope you like it!!! And a huge thank you to the people who commented on the first chapter! y'all really made my day, and motivated me to get this done before exams! (and all the really good stuff starts next chapter hehehe)


	3. Xander

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inigo meets Xander, and discovers there's much more to him than what meets the eye.

_“Sleigh bells ring, are you listening? In the lane, snow is glistening. A beautiful sight, we’re happy tonight. Walking in a winter wonderland.”_

  
**– Winter Wonderland**

* * *

 

Inigo had spent many hours looking at photos of Prince Xander. Strictly for research purposes, of course. He had looked at the official portraits that Krakenburg had released, as well as the countless photos the press and paparazzi had gathered over the years.

But none of them did him any justice.

Prince Xander was the closest thing to physical perfection Inigo had ever seen. His golden hair curled at the ends like that of a Botticelli angel. He truly was the embodiment of everything regal, from the way he held his head up high, to the shape of his face. He was tall, far taller than Inigo, and it seemed as though he were the human embodiment of every perfect fictional prince on the planet.

“Xander!” Elise bolted from Inigo’s side and wrapped her arms around her older brother, who returned her gesture with a pat on her head. “I thought you said something came up about Father?” Inigo’s ears perked up. _Was that why Xander didn’t attend the press conference? What possibly could have come up?_

“Nothing that couldn’t be resolved in a few hours, little princess.” His voice was deep and rich, and befitting of a crown prince. A soft smile lifted the corners of his lips as he spoke to Elise. “And who is this with you?”

“Didn’t Jakob inform you? I had to get a new tutor! This is Laslow!” She was beaming and gestured towards Inigo with the hand that wasn’t wrapped around Xander’s waist.

Inigo forgot he was actually present, and not just a phantom spectator. He bowed as professionally as he could, back straightened and knees unbent. “Your royal highness.” He looked back up at Xander.

Xander nodded at him. “It’s a pleasure to have you here, Laslow.” Inigo thought he was going to melt. He couldn’t even remember that he was supposed to _hate_ this man. He was literally supposed to be writing an article dissing him!

He could hear Elise and Xander whispering something about her old tutor, and what happened to them. Inigo wouldn’t have been surprised if Elise had tried to scare them away. But that isn’t what mattered right now. It seemed Inigo had won himself into Elise’s good graces, and he planned to stay there. He wasn’t, however, expecting to come face to face with the world’s most gorgeous prince. That was a wholly new challenge Inigo hadn’t psyched himself up for.

“Are you okay? You look flushed.” Inigo didn’t realise Xander had been talking to him until Elise bounded over and shook his arm.

“Yes! Of course, I’m good! It’s just- uh- your face!” If Inigo could leave this world, and let the ground underneath him swallow him up, he would have done it in a heartbeat. Today had been a day dedicated to embarrassment. Xander didn’t seem to understand Inigo’s blunder, as he raised one free hand to his cheek in mild horror.

“My face?” He rubbed his cheek before looking down at Elise. “Is something wrong with my face?”

Elise could only respond by releasing a fit of giggling. “Oh, Xander, you’re going to have to forgive Laslow. He’s funny!” Inigo felt his cheeks burn, and he was certain that they were redder than they had ever been in the past. It was lucky that Elise was here.

“Oh, it was a joke, I see. I’ve never been good at those.” Xander pursed his lips, which only served to send Elise into another fit of giggles. Despite his current beet-red disposition, Inigo found himself smiling too. They acted like a family, not like the stuffy royalty that was expected. “I’m glad Elise seems to find you tolerable. That definitely wasn’t the case for the last tutors.” Xander’s eyebrows furrowed, highlighting the frown lines between them. Inigo could only imagine what she had put her old tutors through to send them running for the hills.

“Laslow liked Mouseketeer,” Elise started with a shrug of her shoulders. “What are you doing out here anyway?”

Xander gestured to the target a few feet away, with arrows stuck everywhere except the centre. “Archery practice. I think I am a little rusty.” Inigo had always known that archery was a rich people thing, and this only proved that theory.

Elise turned her head and wrinkled her nose at the sight of the arrow-littered target. “Yeah, I think rusty is the right word. You could take a few tips from Niles, big brother.” Inigo wasn’t even going to question why the one-eyed pirate was good at archery. Elise grabbed for a bow that was hung up on the wall beside her. “Or me!”

Neither Xander or Inigo had time to protest before Elise notched an arrow and let it fly. And by some twist of fate, it hit the exact centre of the ringed target. Inigo could have sworn his jaw hit the floor in shock. How had someone so small and cute done that? Inigo didn’t even have to look at Xander to know he was in a similar state of disbelief.

No one spoke for a few moments after that, but Elise’s laughter broke the silence. “I told you! Leo will be happy that one of us is finally better at something than you.” She poked her tongue out at him. “That means I win our bet!”

Xander actually laughed, and Inigo could have sworn the heavens opened up and were shining down upon him. His laugh was a real one, not the practised one that Inigo expected a crown prince to have, but it made Inigo’s chest tighten. “I can’t believe you two placed a bet on being able to do something better than me.” He kneeled down to Elise’s height. “There’s so much you’re better at than I, little princess. You’re kinder than I could ever dream to be, and Leo so intelligent, it’s scary.” Xander ruffled her hair in the affectionate way that only an older brother could.

Inigo wasn’t sure he was still supposed to be there to witness this obviously personal moment, but his legs were glued in place.

Prince Xander wasn’t the person that Inigo thought he was. He was kinder, and he evidently cared immensely for his family. Inigo didn’t know how the press had it so wrong. He only hoped that Xander wasn’t hiding something.

* * *

 

It was hours later by the time Inigo was allowed to retire back to his room. After their encounter with Xander, Elise dragged Inigo around the rest of the palace’s gardens, showing him her favourite parts, and where the best flowers were going to bloom when Spring arrived. Inigo had far more fun than he thought he was going to.

But all that was soon forgotten, and Inigo was surrounded by never-ending piles of maths papers. It was a divine form of hell.

“I can’t even read this stuff, it’s just gibberish!” Inigo ran a hand through his hair. “What even is a scatter plot? What do I do?”

“You could hire a tutor,” Severa laughed back. Her and Owain’s faces were slightly pixelated through his laptop screen, but it was still good to see them. It was definitely a comfort that Inigo needed after the day he had.

“Stay calm, Inigo! Become one with the numbers!” Owain’s voice was loud through his laptop’s speakers. Inigo really did miss his friends. No one else could have drawn a smile out of him at a time like this

“Henry says you’re a lunatic for doing this, by the way.”

“You guys told him?” Inigo knew he was going to have to tell his father what was going on eventually, but at the same time, he wished it was himself who told him.

“Well, yeah. He asked if we had heard anything.” Severa offered a smile. “He’s not mad. I haven’t heard him laugh like that since you got your hand stuck in a watering can, though.” And with that comment, all three of them burst into laughter. This was the fine product of a lifetime of friendship; being able to laugh about something completely embarrassing was even comforting.

A loud knock at the door prompted Inigo to sit upright. “Gotta go, guys. I’ll text you in the morning. Send my love to Dad!”  Owain and Severa gave a small wave goodbye as Inigo slammed his laptop shut, and forced himself to stand up and open the door.

When he swung it open, it revealed none other than Elise (hadn’t he seen her only an hour ago?). She had already changed into a different dress than the one she had on throughout the day. This one was a soft lilac, with matching bows in her curled hair.

“Princess Elise! Are you supposed to be here?” Inigo peeked out behind her, and saw a young woman in the corridor, her eyes staring at him as though they could burn a hole in his skull. He imagined that neither of them were supposed to be lurking down the male staff corridor. 

“Castle Krakenburg is my home, silly! Of course I’m supposed to be here!” She smiled up at him. “Don’t mine Effie, she’s just my retainer. I wanted to ask you a question. Can I come in?” Inigo didn’t have time to decide if that was a bad idea before she waltzed right on past him. Effie followed in as well, not saying a word. Apparently, privacy wasn’t a thing around Krakenburg.

“Is this math for tomorrow’s lesson?” Elise was shuffling through the papers on Inigo’s bed. “Because I think to learn about scatter graphs would be a waste of your time! I get them.” Inigo sighed. He had spent hours trying to decipher these unknown dot and line codes, and now it was all for nothing. “Can we write, perhaps?”

Inigo nodded. “Writing sounds perfect. I’ll have something ready.” Inigo rubbed the back of his neck. This tutoring thing wasn’t easy. “You said you had a question?”

“Lady Elise would like to know if you would be her guest,” Effie said, as though that were a complete explanation. She stood with her legs shoulder width apart and hands behind her back, the way a trained warrior would stand.  It was far too intimidating for this hour of the night.

“A guest? For what?”

“It’s a tradition! Around Christmas, all the government officials and nobles arrive for a cocktail party, roughly a week before the Christmas Ball. And it’s so horribly boring, Laslow! It’s just adults complaining about various things. It’s the same every year! Xander and Camilla do their best to make polite conversation, Leo completely vanishes about half an hour into the party, and I end up sitting all alone.” Elise huffed, hands on hips. “It’s the worst. But I thought maybe if you came, I’d have someone to talk to! So would you, please? It's in two days time, I really do hope you'll say yes.”

A smile spread across Inigo’s face. Not only was this the perfect opportunity to gather more information, but spending time with Elise was more than pleasant enough. He had absolutely no qualms with this.

“I’d be more than happy to accompany you, milady.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EXAMS ARE OVER AND I'M FREE AND I PLAN TO WRITE HEAPS OF THIS AS FAST AS I CAN! Also!! This is the last chapter before all the cute stuff (and some bad stuff) starts to go down, so I'm so excited to write the next bits!!! Thank you to everyone who comments and such, it really makes my day when I read them!!!
> 
> And as a side note, I'm on Tumblr and Twitter both at @keiththepaladin, so feel free to come say hi!!


	4. Formalities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inigo grows closer to Xander, but it seems as though all isn't going to plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ayyy this is a long update bc CHRISTMAS!!!
> 
> (Elise is a perfect plot point i want to thank her for existing)

_“I won’t ask for much this Christmas. I won’t even wish for snow. And I’m just gonna keep on waiting, underneath the mistletoe.”_

  
**– All I want for Christmas is You**

 

* * *

 

The library was the quietest place in the entirety of Castle Krakenburg. The only people that Inigo had seen in there were himself and Princess Elise, and occasionally Leo. It wasn’t as busy bustling as the rest of the castle. And it was that exact reason Inigo liked it the most.

“Do you think this is good?” Elise passed Inigo the pad of paper she had been writing on.

He skimmed it with his eyes, not really absorbing a word that was written. “Yes, milady, this is wonderful. Shakespeare is fearful of your writing skills.” He winked at her and handed the paper back to her.

“Does that mean we’ve done enough for today?” There was hope in her voice. It was good to know she hated learning as much as Inigo hated teaching (if he were able to call it that).

“In my professional opinion, we’ve done more than enough.”

“Let’s go for a walk!” She jumped up and grabbed Inigo by the wrist. They ran through the winding corridors of the castle and ended up outside, where the gardens remained blanketed in pure white snow.

“Even the weather is nice today! Let’s see if the Snowdrops bloomed!” She seemed so joyful and childlike running around the garden. She turned a corner where Inigo could no longer see her, but could still hear her.

“Xander? You again?” Elise was so _loud._ Inigo jogged to catch up to where she was.

True to her word, the crown prince of Nohr was standing in the archery range again. He stood out against the bright white of the snow. _Be cool this time._

“I thought I had to practice some more. Niles had some rather unfavourable things to say about my archery skill.” He smiled at them both. “Hello, Laslow.”

His archery skills seemed no better than the last time. In fact, they were worse. Some of the arrows weren’t even hitting the target this time.

“Xander, no offence, but I think even Laslow can shoot arrows better than you.” _Was that a jab at Xander, or Inigo?”_

“He can try, then.” Before Inigo could process, the bow was thrust into his hands and he was standing in the range, right before the target.

He had no idea what to do. He had never fired anything in his life, let alone a pointed stick that was designed to kill. His inexperience must have shown, as Xander immediately moved behind him and grabbed his arms.

“You hold it like this, see?” Inigo’s back was pressed against Xander’s as he positioned the bow in his arms. “You’ll get the hang of it.”

“Uh, yeah.” Inigo’s plan to look cool and collected had flown out of the metaphorical window.

_Inigo didn’t have a stupid crush on Prince Xander, right?_

“And then you pull the string back.” As he said this, his arms also made the motion causing Inigo’s to do the same. Inigo momentarily forgot to breathe.

“And then-” Whatever Xander was going to say next was cut off by a yelp truly undignified for the future king. “Elise!”

She had thrown a snowball at him. It hit the back of his neck and had run down into his clothes.

But that wasn’t all. They were going to suffer Elise’s wrath today. She already had another snowball in hand, this one aimed at Inigo.

It was a battlefield now.

Inigo found himself using Xander as a shield as he hurled more snowballs at Elise. He didn’t however, always hit his target. One of his snowballs got thrown at an unfortunate angle and instead hit the back of Xander’s blonde head.

“Oh Laslow, you’re a traitor.” Xander threw an icy-cold snowball right at Inigo’s face. It was cold, but it didn’t bother him. He was being bombarded by snowballs from every direction, both Elise and Xander now ganging up on him. He couldn’t throw snowballs back at them fast enough.

All three of them were laughing, a deep laugh from within. A genuine, childlike laugh.

“I surrender! I surrender!” Inigo laughed as he fell onto his back in the snow. The sheer force of their snowballs (and his own laughter) had knocked him over.

Inigo was so happy, he forgot why he was at Castle Krakenburg in the first place.

* * *

 

Inigo was perched at the edge of his bed, laptop balanced precariously on his knees. He had to start writing this article, for it to be done by Xander’s coronation.

He hadn’t written much yet. He didn’t know what he was supposed to write. He typed a title, delete it. More words. Delete. A by-line. Deleted.

Nothing was working.

He was saved from this repetitive hell by a pounding knock at his door. It definitely wasn’t Elise, she knocked softer than that. It wouldn’t have been Jakob either, he didn’t even bother knocking (Inigo had discovered, luckily at a time where he was decent.)

He sprung up to answer the door. He didn’t have a chance though, because the person on the other side of the door found it fitting to barge in.

It was another new face, but this one ten times more unpleasant seeming than the last. His long, dark hair was greased back, and he wore a horrid snarl on his face. He appeared the type of person Inigo had always thought of as slimy.

“Can I help you?” Inigo knew he didn’t like this person.

“I don’t know who you are, but I think it best you leave quietly.” His voice was slimy, too. Inigo had faced enough bullies (he and Severa had been chasing off anyone who dare pick on Owain for years.) He knew how to handle them.

“Sorry, who are you?” That was his only question. He was not going to let this man intimidate him, as he clearly came to do.

“Iago, advisor to the throne. Not that it matters to you.” Inigo soon discovered that Iago’s snarl was a permanent one. “I tried to do a background search on you, and low and behold, ‘Laslow’ doesn’t seem to exist.”

“I’m right here, aren’t I?” Inigo’s hands balled into fists. He had to prevent them from shaking. _Fake it till you make it._ This man wouldn’t scare him.

“And that’s what worries me.” Iago’s skin was so pale he seemed translucent. Almost sickly. It was beyond off-putting. “I fear you _Americans_ are bad influences. Especially after the snowball fiasco this morning. The castle walls have eyes and ears, you know.”

Inigo hadn’t been aware of how information passed through Krakenburg, but he didn’t care.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” If Inigo Inigo just pretended that he really was innocent, maybe Iago would believe him.

He needed Iago to believe him. At least until the coronation.

“I’m going to work out who you are, little boy. And when I do, you’re going to have hell to pay.”

* * *

 

“Laslow!” The second that Inigo entered the hall, he was greeted by Elise running towards him. It was different from how it had appeared yesterday, and all Inigo could think was that Jakob was a decorating genius.

There were pine trees every ten feet, each decorated with golden and red baubles and a thousand twinkling lights while radiating such a beautiful scent. The ceilings and archways were adorned with matching decorations. The chandeliers were all emitting a warm glow throughout the room. It was as though a Hallmark movie had come to life.

“This is incredible!” Inigo smiled down at Elise. She was dressed as wonderfully as ever, but this time in a festive red.

“Jakob did do a really great job! But he always does. I don’t know how he manages this, honestly. One second the hall is empty, and then BAM! Christmas!” Elise’s enthusiasm was contagious, and Inigo couldn’t help the smile on his face. He was trying to push aside his previous conversation with Iago. He couldn’t do anything about that right now, so he may as well just enjoy tonight.

The hall wasn’t only filled with enough decorations to fill an oval, but also hundreds of people making conversation amongst themselves. It wasn’t any kind of party Inigo had ever attended in New York. There was no loud music or dancing, just one pianist and some classical music.

“I’m so happy you decided to come! I’ve already lost Leo, and Xander is off doing Xander-things.”

“I thought you mentioned a sister? Camille, right?” Inigo had to play dumb. He very-well knew of the Nohrian royal family, and that yes- Elise had an older sister named Camilla, who had a reputation almost as bad as Xander’s.

“Almost, her name is Camilla. And she’s out of the country right now. Charity work. I really miss her. But she’s promised she will be back before Christmas.” There was a soft fondness that Inigo recognised on Elise’s voice when she spoke about her siblings. It was the same one he noticed in himself when he spoke of his father.

“You really love them, right?” It wasn’t the type of question Inigo thought he’d be asking tonight. It wasn’t some scandal or royal secret. It was abundantly better than that.

“My siblings? They’re the best people on the planet. I just wish everyone else knew them in the way I do, though! The tabloids are horrid to them. Xander is always said to be a jerk, Camilla rude and Leo cold and uncaring. And it’s always untrue. They’re so misunderstood. Xander is so kind, Camilla cares about everyone and Leo is actually really funny. Gosh, I wish I could get my hands on a reporter or two and kick them in the kneecaps.”

Inigo was too put-off by Elise’s hatred of reporters to laugh about the punishment of kneecap kicking. He wasn’t supposed to be getting attached after only three days, but he didn’t want her to loathe him!

Inigo made an important decision at that moment. He wasn’t going to write the horrible article he walked into Nohr planning to write. He wasn’t going to sensationalise it as he had always been taught to do. No- for once he was going to write nothing but the truth. If not to make himself feel a little better about what he was doing, then for Elise. And maybe by extension, for all the Nohrian royals.

“What about your family, Laslow?” Elise’s question broke him out of his thoughts.

“My family? It’s just me and my dad. His name is Henry.” Talking about his father made Inigo instantly homesick. This conversation with Elise was taking far too many emotional turns for his liking.

“Oh, it must be so hard for you to leave him! Are you going back for Christmas?” Inigo hadn’t thought that far ahead. He was supposed to be heading back now, to be reunited with his dad tomorrow.

“If I have permission to leave, then I’ll go back to New York and spend Christmas with Dad. My friends, Severa and Owain, have promised they’ll keep him company, though.” It was probably too much information to reveal, but Elise was so easy to talk to. He couldn’t help how naturally the conversation flowed.  “Thanks for asking, milady.”

“Can you do me a favour?”

“Anything. What’s up?”

“Can you drop the ‘milady’ and the ‘Princess Elise’? Just ‘Elise’ is fine. It would make me feel more human, and less like you’re being paid to keep me company. Which I suppose you are, but still.”

It was understandable.

“Of course, Elise.”

Before their conversation could progress any further, they were joined by another person, one whom Inigo instantly recognised.

“Little princess, I haven’t seen you tonight. Hello Laslow, Elise told me you would be coming. It’s good to see you here.”

“Good to see you as well, Your Highness.” Inigo was determined not to make a fool of himself again. Once was more than enough for that tomfoolery.

“Hi, Xander!” Elise waved at her older brother. “Are you having fun?” She giggled. It was sweet, the way she did that, and not the fake giggle that most seemed to be.

“Stop teasing, Elise.” If Xander wasn't grinning at his sister, he would have been intimidating. “These things aren’t fun. Not in the slightest.”

“Well, I did see Lady Montague looking quite intently at you earlier. Perhaps you have an eligible suitor?” By this point, she was beyond soft chuckles, but laughing with her whole heart. “Oh, Laslow, did you see the old woman with the feathered hat bigger than her body? That’s Lady Montague.” Inigo wasn’t entirely sure what was happening, but seeing Elise and Xander in a good mood spread to Inigo.

“I’ll be back in one moment, please excuse me.” He smiled at them again before departing. It was far too soon for Inigo’s liking. He wasn’t sure why he wanted Xander to stay. But perhaps he had more people to attend to.

“Wish Lady Montague well for me!” She yelled back. But in a contrast, as soon as he was a far distance away, Elise’s face fell.

“Mil- Elise? Is everything okay?”

“He’s not good.” That was such a bizarre comment. Xander had been here a matter of seconds ago, and he had seemed in such high spirits. Was Inigo missing something?

“He seems happy?”

“He’s been drinking. Xander never drinks. Only when he’s really upset. Gosh, that makes it sound like he’s got an alcohol problem.  No, it’s not a lot, it’s never been a lot. But it’s something Leo pointed out years ago and I guess he’s right.” Elise’s ramble faded as they fell into silence.

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown.” Inigo hadn’t ever considered how stressful it would be to have the fate of a whole country thrust into your hands. Especially when the majority of the said country hated you.

“Yeah, something like that.” She sighed in a way that wasn’t befitting of someone her age. It was as though it were from a person who had been around and experienced many heartaches.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Inigo was a horrible, horrible person. Behind his guise of wanting to offer support, he also wanted more information.

“I would, but I don’t even know where to start.” She was staring at one spot on the floor. “But I’ve gotta stay happy for them, you know? The last thing I want is Xander and Camilla and Leo to worry.”

Inigo’s heart broke for her. She was so young, and yet already shouldering this kind of burden?

“Well, I’m here for you. You can always talk to me.”

Elise grabbed Inigo and wrapped her hands around his stomach in a tight hug. “Oh Laslow, you have no idea how much that means to me.” He placed his arms on her back to return the hug. He hoped she wasn’t crying, he hated it when people cried.

She pulled away and smiled up at him. No tears, a relief. “You’re a really good person, Laslow.”

Inigo didn’t think he was a good person.

Xander returned shortly after that, as he said he would. “Have either of you seen Leo? Usually, he waits for longer than this to make his exit.”

“I saw Prince Takumi here earlier, and you know how much they love to try and beat each other at chess. So they probably left?” It was so jarring how Elise could immediately put on her brave face again, as though she were not just pouring out her heart.

“You’re probably right.” Xander took a seat on the other side of Elise, prompting the others to also sit on the fancy-looking chairs. “Are you two having a good time, at least?”

“As much fun as an underage princess and her tutor can have at a cocktail party,” Inigo smirked at him. “And yourself?”

“Ah, not the greatest, unfortunately. I think I shall retire to bed soon.” Perhaps Elise was right. Perhaps he was worse than he was letting on.

“Big brother? Do you want me to come with you?” Elise’s eyebrows scrunched together much like Xander’s did when he was concerned.

“No no, someone needs to stay here and make sure the guests are alright. And until I feel a bit better or Leo returns, I hope that you don’t mind?”

Elise smiled at them both. Inigo noticed that she did that a lot- smile even when she didn’t really want to. “Of course. But I can’t have you going alone! Laslow, please go with him.”

He didn’t even get the chance to oppose her decision. It was more of an order than a request. Not that Inigo particularly minded.

“He doesn't have to-”

“He should. You don’t mind, right, Laslow?” Even Xander wasn’t allowed to dispute her word, apparently.

Inigo nodded. “Yeah, of course I don’t mind. Shall we go?” Inigo stood up, Xander doing the same. “I’ll be back shortly, Elise.” Inigo smiled warmly at her before departing with Xander.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Inigo wasn’t the type to make small-talk, but something was off.

“I’m sure.”

It seemed Xander wasn’t the type for small-talk either. They reached his room in a matter of minutes, but every step they took caused Xander to slow down. Inigo opened the door to Xander’s room for him.

It appeared the alcohol had caught up to him. He stumbled into his room, almost tripping. He was probably lucky that no one else was around to witness it. Inigo could only imagine what kind of scandal a drunken future-king would be.

“Goodness, let me help you.” Inigo knew he was stronger than he looked. He did write a fitness column, for God’s sake. He hoisted one of Xander’s arms over his shoulder and walked him to the bed in the centre of the room.

Something about Xander’s room struck Inigo as strange. It wasn’t much different to his own, but that was the problem. It was ridiculously impersonal. Inigo would assume that Xander had lived in this room his whole life, but there was no sign of it. There weren’t any photos or any items that he had received over the years. Just a bed, a wardrobe, a couple of chairs and a bookshelf.

“Thank you, Laslow.” Even drunk, Xander had impeccable manners.

Inigo didn’t account for how much larger than him Xander was, however. It made maneuvering around the room almost impossible. By the time he managed to reach the bed, he wasn’t sure how to help Xander down.

But just as fate would have it, Inigo fell over instead. Right onto the bed, taking Xander down with him.

“Prince Xander, I am so, so sorry” But Inigo’s babbling apology didn’t mean anything to Xander. He wasn’t even listening. He had fallen asleep, lying right on top of Inigo. Inigo would have left if he could have, but the sheer force of Xander’s weight kept him pinned down. “Prince Xander?” Definitely asleep. Inigo got a good look at his face at that moment. He could stare without worry of being caught. Xander really was the most beautiful man Inigo had ever laid eyes on.

Inigo sighed for what felt like the billionth time in the last few days. He didn’t exactly know how he ended up here. He was in deep, deep trouble now.

He definitely had a stupid crush on the crown prince of Nohr.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAA MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday period, whether you celebrate xmas or not!!! I'm kinda upset I didn't have this done for the day, but alas, I hope this chapter makes up for it :) Are y'all enjoying this?? 
> 
> (Also as a side note I started a fire emblem side blog on tumblr, and I desperately want friends, so please shoot me a message @xanderthepaladin or @keiththepaladin) <3


	5. Discoveries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inigo's heart is getting more and more muddled by the minute (and Elise is a very, very clever girl)

_ “Last Christmas, I gave you my heart, but the very next day, you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears, I’ll give it to someone special.”  _

  
**– Last Christmas**

* * *

  
  


The sounds of soft whimpers and grunts woke Inigo from his restless sleep. He couldn’t remember making the avid decision to fall asleep with Xander on top of him, but he had been so exhausted he couldn’t help it. 

Not that that was an explanation for the current events. Xander’s head was still pressed against Inigo’s chest, the same way it had been a few hours ago. It made Inigo’s heart race faster, he was almost afraid Xander was going to hear it. But the prince was far to deep in his own bad dreams to be aware of it. His eyebrows were drawn together, frown line strikingly evident on his forehead. He was breathing heavily, perhaps hyperventilating. Inigo’s heart broke. What could he possibly have been dreaming?

“Prince Xander? Prince Xander!” Inigo was gently shaking his shoulder, enough to wake him, but hopefully enough not to startle him. “It’s a nightmare, you’re okay. Please wake up.” 

The second Xander’s eyes opened he practically jumped to the other side of the bed, as far from Inigo as possible. 

“Hey, it’s okay! Sorry to startle you, I- I couldn’t get up.” Inigo didn’t know why he was worried that Xander was going to be offended he stayed. That really was wildly out of his control. But he had to focus on Xander right now, who was clearly panicking. It was so strange to see someone who was usually so calm have an absolute look of terror in his eyes. 

“Laslow, I’m so sorry.” Xander’s eyes were rimmed with red, as though we had been crying in his sleep. Inigo didn’t think his heart could hurt any more than it did right now. 

“It’s alright, I’m sorry if I startled you. Uh, are you okay?” Usually Inigo was a master at comforting people. Exceptional at knowing what to say and how to act. But around Xander it was as though as his brain lost every ability it had, and he was just a pile of mush. 

“I’m sorry. I will be fine.” Xander’s voice was small, and he was clearly not making any move to come any closer to Inigo. Inigo’s brain was moving at a thousand miles an hour. Something had upset him, something he had been having terrible, terrible dreams about, and he seemed to lose all composure. 

“You don’t need to apologise, Prince Xander. You haven’t done anything wrong!” Inigo offered a smile, hoping it wouldn’t expose how nervous he was right now. 

“Thank you, Laslow. Just Xander is fine.” Perhaps Xander was more like Elise than Inigo first thought. His breathing had returned to a normal pace, an absolute relief for both of them. “Please, please don’t mention this to anyone.” Inigo was almost offended, but then he remembered that his whole life was a lie at the moment, and suddenly the request wasn’t overly farfetched.  

“I promise, wouldn’t even dream of it.” They fell into awkward silence after that, the kind that wasn’t going to be filled unless someone forced the first move. “I’ll go.”

“Please don’t go-” Xander cut himself off. “I mean I’d really appreciate the company right now, but if you have anywhere else you would rather be, please do not let me keep you.” Inigo’s chest felt warm. He must have been doing something right in his attempt to comfort. 

“I’m happy to stay, it’s fine.” Inigo smiled at him again, a far more genuine smile than before. “Why don’t you come sit over here?” Inigo was trying to be as gentle as possible. Xander slid back and sat beside Inigo, close enough that he could feel his body heat, but far enough that no part of them were touching. “Let’s just talk, yeah? Tell me about yourself. I’ve only been here a few days, after all.”

He could tell that Xander was very thankful for the distraction. “Myself? I do not know what to tell you. I’ve devoted my life to bettering Nohr, but I wish for more than anything to be more devoted to my siblings. They’ve grown up, and I’ve barely been present for it.” He was frowning again. 

“Where have you been?” Inigo was simultaneously making conversation while finding out information. He wasn’t completely in it for himself.

“I was at what Elise has always referred to as ‘Prince Training’. I suppose that is a good name for it. I’ve been travelling to different countries for various diplomatic purposes if that’s what you mean. I hated leaving them with Father, though.”

It always struck Inigo as strange that none of the Nohrian royals seemed to be mourning Garon’s death. It had only been two months ago, hadn’t it? Was the death of a king seen as so insignificant? 

“Why?” He couldn’t help himself.

“He was a cruel man, I suppose.” Inigo could tell by the tone that he wasn’t going to get any more information on the matter. 

“I’m so sorry, Xander.” There was a tugging pain in Inigo’s abdomen, he didn't know what to say. He couldn’t even begin to fathom what Xander and the others had grown up with. “Do you miss him?”

“Not in the slightest.”  Xander sighed. “I really am sorry about tonight.”

“It’s okay, really.” Inigo smiled at him again. He really was gorgeous, even with red-rimmed eyes and a permanent frown. 

“You’re a really great friend, Elise is right.”

“Oh, you’ve been talking about me, have you?” Inigo had to lighten the mood with a wink, for Xander’s sake. It would put him at more of an ease. He deserved to relax more than anyone Inigo knew. 

“A lot, actually. She’s very fond of you. In all honesty, I am too.” Xander must have still been intoxicated. Yes, that had to be the only reason he’d say anything like that. They’d only known each other for four days! He couldn’t possibly be fond of Inigo yet. But that didn’t stop the crimson blush spreading across Inigo’s cheeks, or that warm intoxicating feeling spreading through his chest. 

“That’s really sweet.” Inigo’s voice was quiet, now. It was really sweet, and if he hadn’t heard Xander say it he wouldn’t have believed it. 

Before either of them had the chance to say anything more, Xander’s head lulled to the side and fell upon Inigo’s shoulder. He was asleep again. 

Inigo planned to stay right where he was and chase away any potential bad dreams.

* * *

 

When Inigo woke in the morning he was alone in Xander’s bed. The prince must have woken up hours ago, Elise had mentioned something about him being an early bird. The clock on the wall showed that it was half-past eleven. Inigo was horrifically late to tutor Elise.

“Fuck!” He shouted before scrambling out of the bed. He was lucky he was still dressed, though he imagined he should change and brush his hair. He bolted out of Xander’s room and down the winding corridors of Castle Krakenburg (though, he was very careful not to run into anybody, especially Niles.) 

 

He burst into his own room only to be greeted by Elise standing in the centre of the room. She looked wide awake and was absolutely radiating sunshine.

“Good morning! Where did you go last night? You didn’t come back!” Her blonde hair was piled into a bun on top of her head, and today’s frilly dress was made of beautiful blue lace. 

“I..” There wasn’t a point in lying. The chances were that she knew anyway. “I stayed with Xander.” 

She giggled into her hand. “He really likes you, Inigo.”

“Does he? That’s- Wait. What did you just call me?” He had to have misheard her. There was no way she would know what his name was! He rubbed his sweaty palms against his trousers. 

“Inigo! That’s your real name, right?” Her smile had completely gone from adorable to terrifying in 0.2 seconds. She sat down on his bed, maintaining eye contact. “And you’re a reporter?”

“How did you work it out?” There wasn’t a point in denying it, she knew too much to be bluffing. 

“Well, to start, you were a pretty bad tutor. I think I spent more time teaching you maths than you spent teaching me. And then you were super late this morning, so I came here to look for you, but you weren’t here either, so I went through all your stuff!” She smiled sweetly at him. It was the most intimidated he had ever been in his life.

She pat the spot on the bed next to her. “Come sit down. We have an agreement to make.”

He begrudgingly sat beside her, her eyes glued to his. “I’ll go.” He seemed to be saying that a lot lately.

“No, I don’t want you to go! You’re a good person, I can tell. A bad person wouldn’t be acting like you do. I think we can make a deal, though.”

“A deal?” His heart was still racing in his chest and was showing no signs of slowing down. He didn’t account for this happening. 

“I want you to write the article you were planning on writing. I want you to write the absolute truth.” Her eyes seemed to go glassy, but it could have been a trick of the light. “I want you to write about what a wonderful person my brother is, and how he’s going to be a great king. And I won’t tell anyone your secret until you decide it’s time to go. Does that sound good?”

“I- of course. Thank you, Princess Elise.”

“Thank  _ you.  _ But what happened to ‘Elise’? We’re still friends, dummy. I’m not actually that mad. If anything, it’s a good thing!” It was a miracle. She didn’t hate him. He was fully prepared to be absolutely despised, but Elise was showing him kindness. She was the last person he ever wanted to betray. 

“Elise.” It was a sigh of relief.

“And I’ll call you Inigo.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this.... hasn't been edited but I'll do that in the morning!! I just wanted to get this out lmao. I hope y'all liked it!!! (shoutout to the birbs for inspiring me to actually get this done, i love u!)
> 
> I'm on tumblr @xanderthepaladin ! come say hi!!


	6. Warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xander and Inigo have a very enlightening conversation.

_“Christmas Eve will find me, where the lovelight gleams. I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams.”_

  
**– I’ll be Home for Christmas**

* * *

 

 

“What have you written so far, anyway?” Inigo and Elise were seated at their regular spot by the window in the library. He wasn’t pretending to tutor her anymore, but instead, they sat together and worked on their own projects. She was writing an essay, him an article.

“Nothing, Elise. Literally nothing.” He wanted to bang his head against his keyboard. For someone who was excellent at running his mouth, he couldn’t string together half a sentence on the topic.

“You’re just staring at a blank page? That’s lame.”

“You wound me.” He didn’t mind Elise’s teasing. It was a comfort. She didn’t hate him for what he had done. If anything, they had become even closer afterwards. They had a shared goal now!

“Write about Nohr!”

“Oh, funny you say that! I was about to write about Hawaii instead.”

“Shut up, Inigo! I liked Laslow more. He didn’t talk back.” They were both trying their best (and failing) to stifle their laughter.

A knock on a nearby shelf pulled them both out of their fits of giggles.

“I never knew tutoring could be fun.” Xander was grinning at them both from across the room.

“Do you want to join us?” Elise pat the vacant seat beside her. “The more the merrier!”

“Perhaps another time. I was actually hoping to speak to Laslow, but if now isn’t a good time then it can definitely wait.”

Inigo didn’t even have the chance to reply. “He’s free right now! We just finished.” Elise essentially shoved him out of his seat and towards Xander, causing Inigo to stumble along the way.

“Would you like to take a walk with me?” There were a billion things going round in Inigo’s head. Did Xander know that he was a reporter? Why did he want to take a walk? They hadn’t spoken since that night, was Inigo in trouble for something? But at the forefront of his mind, all he could really think was that he wanted to spend more time with Xander.

“Let’s go, then.” Without any further words, Inigo and Xander exited the library, each waving goodbye to Elise as they walked through the doorway.

* * *

 

“I am sorry to pull you away from Elise.” They were walking along the side of a river, their boots making prints in the thick snow.

“I don’t think she’ll mind.” His mind was still reeling, and Xander was yet to give any form of indication about why he wished to speak. He didn’t seem mad, though. That had to be a good sign.

“You’re American, correct? Do you like Nohr?” That wasn’t what Inigo was expecting. Small talk about Nohr?

“It’s nice. It’s a lot calmer than back in New York.”

Xander stopped walking and turned to Inigo. “That’s uh… not what I wanted to ask you.” He was nervous? Stalling? Inigo didn’t think crown princes got nervous, especially ones as damn handsome as Xander.

“Ask away!” Inigo smiled, hoping it would put Xander at any kind of ease. He was good at that, apparently. Owain and Severa had always told him that he could make even the most anxious people confident.

“I really like you.”

“What?” Inigo couldn’t help the outburst. His was definitely mishearing things. All the snow had gotten into his brain and was causing him to hallucinate. There was definitely no way that Xander had said that.

Xander was biting his bottom lip. “I know this puts you in an awkward position, and I hate to do that to you. I just felt as though I should not keep it from you.”

“Xander, stop talking.” He needed a moment to just _think._ He looked into Xander’s warm, brown eyes which were looking right back into his own. He didn’t mishear Xander. He liked him! He felt the same way!

There wasn’t a thing Inigo could do to prevent the smile that was spreading across his face. His chest was full of giddy warmth. He didn’t know what to say!

But he knew what he could do. Inigo took one long stride to close the gap between himself and Xander, pushed up onto his toes, and pressed his lips to Xanders. He could feel his own heart beating in his chest. The kiss was sweet and soft, and despite the snow around them, it filled Inigo up with warmth.  


Xander was absolutely beaming when Inigo opened his eyes. Inigo was sure that he had the exact same expression on his face. He couldn’t believe this. At this moment he felt as though he was the happiest man alive.

He pulled Inigo into a second kiss, this one more passionate than the first. Inigo absolutely _melted_ into it. He looped his arms around the back of Xander’s neck and pressed his chest against Xander’s. Everything about this moment was perfect.

“You like me too?” Inigo laughed at that. Of course he did. Xander was literally _Prince Charming._

“Oh, definitely.”

* * *

 

“You what?” Severa was literally yelling. She was so loud he had to turn the volume of his laptop down. “You kissed a prince? Like, an actual prince? I need to get into the journalism business!”

Off-screen, Inigo could faintly hear Owain speaking about ‘star-crossed lovers’ and ‘fate’. He was glad he couldn’t hear the whole thing.

“Yeah, I did!” Inigo pointed finger guns at the camera.

“Oh my god!” Inigo was glad his friends were amused by all of this. But more than anything, it was relieving to have people to tell about it. “When are you going to tell him that you’re not a tutor?”

“BE SILENT, SEVERA.” Within seconds, Owain had picked up their screen and all Inigo could see was Owain’s face. “Be happy for now, friend! Don’t let Severa give you woes and worries. Fate will take its course, and everything will be fine!”

“Give him back!”

“No foul villain! You will make him feel bad!”

It was like he never left home.

He didn’t need Severa to make himself feel bad though. He was doing that all on his own.

It took him two hours to get over his initial love-struck shock. He was still on Cloud Nine, but insecurities were slowly finding their way to his mind.

He was lying to Xander! It was a terrible thing to do. And worse than that: Xander liked him now.

He was going to break Xander’s heart. He didn’t want to. Inigo cared about him!

For the first time since he arrived at Castle Krakenburg, he was definitely regretting his decision.

“You’ll be alright, buddy. Don’t look so sad.”

“Thanks, guys. I’ll call you tomorrow?”

“We’ll look forward to it!” Severa yelled back.

“Fate will work in your favour!” Owain exclaimed, before ending their call. Inigo could only hope that he was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all like this!!!!
> 
> (I'm on Tumblr as @xanderthepaladin, feel free to say hello!)


	7. Camilla

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inigo finally gets the chance to meet the last member of the Nohrian royal family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm back kiddos! sorry this took forever

_ “Jingle Bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way! Oh what fun it is to ride, in a one horse open sleigh.”  _

  
**– Jingle Bells**

* * *

 

 

The next couple of days passed by in a complete blur. If Inigo wasn’t ‘tutoring’ Elise, he was spending time with Xander. 

Inigo’s newest favourite thing to do was to goof off in Xander’s office. When it was just the two of them, they had the time to sit and talk. Inigo learnt lots about Xander; he was a cat person, he couldn’t swim, his favourite flowers were roses. Inigo informed Xander that he loved to dance which only prompted Xander to stand up and waltz with Inigo around his office. 

It was perfect.

If only Inigo felt as though he wasn’t lying to him. Betraying him

“What’s on your mind?” Xander’s voice was soft. Inigo didn’t deserve this man in his life. 

“Nothing, Xander. Just… thinking about what I should teach Elise tomorrow.” Xander looked tired. Not the ‘hasn’t gotten enough sleep’ kind of tired, but the kind of tired that radiated from the soul.

“Is everything okay?” Inigo couldn’t stop the deep concern entering his voice. He may not have known Xander for long, but he did know that he was under a lot of stress that he didn’t always know how to cope with. 

“Of course, Laslow.” There was a pause. “Did anyone inform you that Camilla was coming back tomorrow?” If that was Xander’s way of changing the topic, then it definitely worked.

“Your sister?” Inigo’s eyes were widening. He didn’t want to have to lie around another person. Especially Camilla. Through all his research, he had heard that she was rather intimidating. 

“Yes. Elise is thrilled, as are Leo and I. I’ve told her about you, you know. I hope that’s okay with you.” Inigo couldn’t help the crimson blush that spread across his cheeks.  _ He mattered enough to Xander to tell his sister after less than a week?  _

 

“Oh, uh, yeah, I mean, of course that’s okay.” He couldn’t stop stumbling over his words. Inigo didn’t even entirely know what he felt, only that it was incredibly overwhelming. Was he stressed about meeting Camilla? Excited to be introduced to someone who was so important to both Xander and Elise? He wasn’t sure exactly.

“I think she will like you very much.” 

* * *

As Inigo would soon discover, perhaps Camilla liked him a little bit too much.  

After she had returned, and greeted each of her siblings with a kiss on their cheeks, she turned to Inigo with a grin that could only be described as bloodthirsty. Her lilac hair cascaded in curls down her shoulders, and her dress was form-fitting in all of the right places. Everything about her screamed ‘don’t fuck with me’. 

Inigo didn’t know whether to greet her, or to run for the hills.  

She made that decision for him. Before he had the chance to make any move, she approached and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and pulled him into a hug that was far too close in proximity for his liking. He felt his cheeks heat up, definitely spreading a crimson blush across his face. 

She pulled back, but kept her hands firmly clasped over his shoulders. It took all of Inigo's self-preservation not to turn to Xander and mouth ‘help’. She was even more intimidating than he imagined her being.

“So you must be the tutor that’s stolen my brother’s heart,” she said with a devastating wink.

Inigo mustered his strongest smile, and lowered his head in a bow. “It’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, Princess Camilla.”

Inigo could swear he heard Elise giggling that ‘at least he didn’t curtsey this time.’ 

Inigo’s saving grace was Xander approaching. “Camilla, we have lots to catch up on.” He smiled at Camilla, and then turned to Inigo. “Would you like to join us for dinner tonight?”

Camilla interrupted before Inigo had the chance to answer. “You simply must, I haven’t had nearly enough time to talk to you.”

“Of course I will.” He’d just have to get over his fear of being questioned before then.

* * *

“Am I a terrible person?” Inigo was staring up at the sky, back pressed against the bench that he and Elise had picked in the garden.

“That depends on what you wear to dinner tonight.” Elise was grinning at him from underneath the hood of her pink coat. 

“I mean lying to Xander.”

Elise paused. “I don’t know the answer to that. But you’re going to do a good thing for him, right?” 

“Of course I am.” Inigo was going to write the goddamn best article that  _ The Regna Ferox  _ had ever seen. It was going to go viral, and he was hopeful that the criticism upon Xander would subside, if only just a bit. Plus, Inigo would perhaps finally earn some respect as a journalist. 

Everyone won in this situation except their relationship, and the trust between them. 

Inigo exhaled. His inner turmoil on the matter was starting to get old.

“As soon as the article is finished, I’m going to tell him.” If he put a time limit on how long he would allow his own charade to last, then perhaps he’d stop feeling like such a villain. 

“I support that.”

“And if I break his heart?” Inigo knew he had hit rock-bottom when he started pouring his heart out to a little girl.

She sighed and tilted her head away from him. “Then you’ll have to find a way to unbreak it. Plus, he has me and Camilla.”

“And Prince Leo?”

Elise giggled at that. “I suppose. Though I don’t think Leo is the greatest emotional support. He has the comfort level of a knife.” Inigo understood that.

Though, he did want to talk to Leo. He was the only one of the Nohrian siblings who he didn’t have a proper understanding of. Xander was, well, Xander, Camilla was committed to her family and Elise was the sweetest. But he didn’t know Leo. They hadn’t spoken since the first day of Inigo’s trip. 

This was vital to his research, after all.

Inigo sprung up. “How much time till dinner?”

Elise gazed at the watch upon her wrist. “About an hour and a half.”

That was perfectly enough time to seek out the youngest prince. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was a bit short, but I had to set up a proper conversation with Leo >:) (and the Hell that is dinner)
> 
> Come talk to me on Tumblr @xanderthepaladin


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